Stopping Long-Term Benzodiazepines
A sample letter

This is a sample letter that is sometimes used to write to patients who are on long-term benzodiazepines.

Dear

I am writing to you because I note from our records that you have been taking a medicine called ........................ for some time now.

Recently, family doctors have become concerned about this kind of medication when it is taken over long periods. Our concern is that the body can get used to these tablets so that they no longer work properly. If the tablets are stopped suddenly, a few people experience withdrawal effects. Research shows that repeated use of the tablets over a long time may actually cause anxiety and sleeplessness and that the tablets can be addictive.

I am writing to ask you to consider cutting down on your dose of these tablets and perhaps stopping them at some time in the future. The best way to do this is to cut down very gradually on your tablets (for example, if you take three tablets, reduce to two and a half tablets; or if you take one tablet divide it in half). You should make these changes slowly over a period of two to four weeks. In this way, you might be able to make a prescription last longer.

Once you have cut down, you might be able to think about stopping them altogether. Most people even feel better when they are off their tablets.

If you would like to talk to me personally about this, I would be glad to see you in the surgery.

Yours sincerely